N Buttar Sana, B Hansen Peter, Hassager Christian, Ø Andersen Henrik
Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, University Hospital of Copenhagen, Rigshospital, Denmark.
Department of Thoracic-Anaesthesiology, University Hospital of Copenhagen, Rigshospital, Denmark.
J Atr Fibrillation. 2020 Dec 31;13(4):2368. doi: 10.4022/jafib.2368. eCollection 2020 Dec.
AtriClip device has demonstrated an excellent efficacy, long-term durability and safety of left atrium appendage (LAA) closure. We report, the unexpected postoperative transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) finding of thrombi in left atrium (LA) after deployment of an AtriClip in a 73-year-old man with chronic atrial fibrillation and 3-vessel-coronary artery disease undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) surgery and LA appendage ligation. The heart was re-arrested and thrombi were retrieve successfully through a left atriotomy. This case emphasizes the unanticipated role of AtriClip in dislodging the thrombus from LAA, in addition to the importance of sufficient and well-founded imaging (Transesophageal Echocardiogram/ Multidetector Computed Tomography) before and after the deployment of AtriClip device.